Piper Nuelle

Humans have always endeared to draw, write and create with their hands, whether that be from ancient cave paintings from our cave dwelling days, to the modern times where we now use digital pens to draw and write with on electronic screens, there has always been that desire to draw and write!!!

As our brains evolved and along with it our skills, it became evident to man and woman alike that we needed a tool of sorts to help and aid in our creativity… That tool became known as… The mighty pen! Ancient scribes would have used tools and aids that were in reach to them, an early form of a pen such as; Reeds on Papyrus, Camel hair brushes, feather and metal nibs… And became the forefront in design for modern style pens.

From doing some research on the matter it is actually quite difficult to pin point exactly where a pen of sorts was first created or indeed which culture used a form of pen first, in fact it seems that some cultures and civilisations ran parallel with one another and could have been using their own form of a pen around the same time, again making it hard to pin point the first use of one. Take for example the Ancient Egyptians and Ancient Chinese using Reed or Hair for writing but how can we pinpoint who used one first when they are both indeed ancient. (And I know I am being vague here. I’m no history professor and I’m sure if you were able to deep dive and look into it more deeply, you most probably would find a more correct answer, but this is just me doing some quick and private research).

As time moved on and we evolved further with our creative skills, it seems Western Civilisation learned to use Goose feathers or even Swan, giving birth to the Quill pen that we can recognise today. The Quill pen was then used by many around the globe and even today they still holds a rather nostalgic feel to them which is truly fascinating. What is cool is the thought of authors in era’s past using Quill pens and ink to write down their works, their stories and all their ideas, and actually how much time and effort that must have taken due to the Quill not holding much ink other than to write one or a few letters at a time, and even then there was a knack and a Calligraphy method to writing with one.

It was around the 1820’s when new pen engineering rose up and a new style of pen was created, a Steel point pen. These ended up being mass produced and created in Birmingham, England in the UK and took over the writing world by storm. These Steel point pens were much more desirable due to them lasting much longer and being easier to acquire due to the way they could be mass produced.

In the 19th century the beloved fountain pen made it’s big debut which was a huge hit due to no longer having to dip for ink and it held its own inkwell inside the pen in a pod come capsule device. Then along came the Ball-point pen that we have grown to love and use on the daily today. The Biro was created around the 1930’s by a journalist from Hungary, Laszlo Biro, hence the name Biro being used for the pen. It had a clever ball barring system which made it incredibly handy and popular which is why it is still such a staple today in the world of modern writing.

What are the different types of pen that have blossomed and grown over the years along with us humans;

• Reed or Hair brush pen – Very close in image to a paint brush, but very fine to create lettering, or thick, depending on desired look.
• The Quill pen with feathers – Feather with a split to add a nib so it can be dipped in ink
• The Fountain pen – Has a nib and an ink cartridge so no need to dip ink
• The Ball-point pen – Ball barring system, tends to use more oil based ink
• The Gel pen – Gel and or water based ink and can be in many colours and even have scents added
• The Felt tip pen – Porous tip, usually felt or fibre
• Stylus pen – Used for electronic devices with touch screens
• The Rollerball pen – Ball barring with water based ink
• Click mechanism pens – Spring activated to click the pen into place to write but sometimes to also change the colour of the ink

What is the actual meaning of the word… PEN?

The definition of the word pen is – Meaning – A writing instrument that applies ink to a surface such as paper to store words and or drawings.

So, there you have it, a brief history of the pen and the different types and styles of pen that have been around. Some for many moons, some more recently.

Hope you enjoyed my blog post.

xo Piper xo